By Rob Hunt
INDIANAPOLIS — Following earlier adjustments made in school sports classifications, the IHSAA announced the realignment of sectional teams for the fall and winter of 2017. While Pendleton Heights remains in Class 4A and Lapel in Class 2A, the reclassification of other schools will affect potential opponents or sectional destinations for both schools in all sports.
In football, Pendleton Heights and fellow Hoosier Heritage Conference school Delta have been moved from Sectional 22 to Sectional 21. Other schools in this bracket are Frankfort, Lebanon, Marion, Mississinewa and Western. The Arabians will no longer face traditional foes Mt. Vernon, New Castle or Richmond, who remain in Sectional 22.
Lapel will move from football Sectional 37 to Sectional 36, which will now have five Madison County schools among the eight teams in the sectional. Moving with Lapel will be arch rival Frankton; they will be joined by fellow county schools Alexandria, Elwood and Madison-Grant. Northeastern, Shenandoah and Winchester will be the remaining three teams in the sectional.
Both PHHS and Lapel volleyball teams will be affected by a school changing classification. New Castle will drop from Class 4A to 3A this year, allowing New Palestine to move into Sectional 9 along with Connersville, Greenfield-Central, Mt. Vernon, Richmond and Pendleton Heights, who remain.
Lapel volleyball’s Sectional 40 will bid farewell to Wapahani, which moves up to Class 3A due to the success factor. The departure of the state champs, as well as Muncie Burris and Wes-Del, will bring in two more Madison County schools, Alexandria and Elwood, to join Lapel, Frankton, Monroe Central and Sheridan in what will now be a six-team field.
For Pendleton Heights, the soccer realignment is less confusing. There will now be three classes instead of two, with the Arabians now a Class 3A soccer program. Last year’s Sectional 8 field of Anderson, Fishers, Hamilton Southeastern, Noblesville and Pendleton Heights will be joined by Muncie Central in 2017.
For boys’ and girls’ basketball, the changes for both sectional fields are the same. The PHHS road through Sectional 9 will now include New Palestine as a replacement for New Castle in the same fashion as the volleyball change.
There are few changes for Lapel’s sectional field other than the volleyball bracket. Burris drops to Class 1A, and Elwood is added to the basketball sectional, which will include Lapel, Frankton, Monroe Central and Wapahani.